Some thoughts on this whole Manufacture thing

I would love to tell you that I wrote this myself, but today's post is courtesy of a watch industry insider.
I would also love to tell you who wrote it, but owing to their position, the author must remain anonymous ; )

Enjoy!

In 2013, there are a slew of watch brands claiming to be a “manufacture”.  The idea of a manufacture has the noblest of roots, but the waters have been muddied just a bit.  Not unlike the challenges currently faced by the “Swiss Made” moniker, manufacture varies from company to company, press kit to press kit.  Today, I hope to shed a light through this water and help you navigate.

Manufacture: A look at the term

The term manufacture has its origins in the Latin manu factus, which can be translated literally into Made by Hand.  The term has come to encompass several watchmaking ideas. This includes the development/creation of movements by companies for their exclusive use (manufacture movements), full, vertically-integrated, in-house creation of watches (manufacture timepieces), and the companies that create such wares (Manufactures).

The hand crafted aspect remains a romantic notion even now, despite machinery playing an ever increasing role in the creation of watches.  Most imagine their watches made not in a sterile factory, but by a watchmaker, sitting in a sun-drenched room, working on his masterpiece using nothing but his knowledge and tools.  The word manufacture brings with it a great deal of prestige (and expense) to any watch to which it is attached.  Not surprisingly, watchmakers who rely on so-called “industrial” movements are in a race to build their own manufactures and apply that glorious label to their spec sheets.

Manufacture: How you built your home

That being said, few companies fall in to the ideal notion of a true manufacture, that is to say, one who creates their movements/parts/etc in-house.  Do not be afraid, however, as every brand you place at the top of your watchmaking hierarchy are manufactures in the most exclusive use of the word.  Most of these manufactures also have an extensive collection of calibers in their repertoire, as well as a mastery over watchmaking’s most challenging of complications.  These brands deserve to breathe the rare air they do.  They managed this feat using the tried and true method of creating high-quality pieces, and reinvesting in the company itself.  They have integrated themselves, and can now boast strict quality control and accountability, as well as have impressive flexibility when it comes to adapting to the needs of the market.  To put it another way: imagine your home.  Now, imagine you designed and built your home personally.  Who would put more care into the design and construction than you? No one.  

That is exactly the point.

So let’s say that route is unavailable for one reason or another.  Perhaps it takes too long, and the novelty of being a manufacture could become passé before completed.  How else could one attain manufacture status?  Simple - ACQUISITION.  A bracelet maker here, a dial manufacturer there, and eventually a strong list of companies have been assembled to make a watch.  The most important part, however, is the movement maker.  The target would have to be one that can create in volume, but not based on industrial movements, and have a catalog of complications that correctly lines up with your potential market position.  Happy hunting! (author’s note: there are not too many of these companies left to buy, since the big groups starting buying them years before anyone ever thought to).  Using the house analogy again, it would be like buying a construction company, putting your name on it, and then having them build your house. The acquisition of a construction company was a major investment! Your home is now the showcase from which you will attempt to sell more homes.   I suppose if you own the company, then that company builds your home, technically you built your own home.  It is certainly not the same as your neighbor's house that utilized the architect/builder/contractor.

But back to watches.  A fairly new route is the purchase of intellectual property by a brand.  A fairly straightforward business transaction if there ever was one.  Perhaps this deal might include the people and the machinery, and all a brand has to do is set them up inside the workshop.  This is more akin to buying the exclusive rights to blueprints for a house that you build yourself.  I highly doubt that anyone would call you an architect, but you  dud build your home and that is source of pride.  This has occurred twice in recent memory, and in one case it was a bit thorny, while in the other it was a non-event.  The difference between the two: how this transaction was presented.  People generally understand pedestrian business dealings such as the purchase of IP are a part of life and forget them quickly.  If one tries to pass the work off as its own, there is generally some backlash involved.  Backlash in the watch business is a terrible thing, because it can literally destroy a product before it is even shown to the public. 

In Conclusion

So that was a quick look at a complicated word: manufacture.  Every “manufacture” brand has an interesting way of joining this club, and I wouldn’t possibly list all of them.  Some brands embody both the spirit and the practice of the idea.  Some bought their way in.  Some have a hybrid approach.  In the end, the products made by the unnamed brands in question are still great.  All of the homes described above are solid, well-built, and will serve you and your descendants if you choose to keep it that long.  This is merely food for thought, with the hope that it adds yet another layer in the quest to find an interesting, unique watch that is a reflection of your personality.